When You're Feeling Lonely
by Obscuris
Summary: Tails is feeling down about his role in the team. Amy is feeling down about Sonic's most recent evasion. Both need someone to talk to... TailsAmy friendship. [editted for typoes & wording July 14, 2007]


**"When You're Feeling Lonely"**

A _Sonic the Hedgehog_ fanfiction

**Author**: Numbuh Infinity

**Disclaimer**: Sonic the Hedgehog and company are the slaves of Sega and Sonic Team. I'm not their master. I'm not making any money off of them, either. So put down that phone.

**Rating**: Everyone

**Date of completion**: May 23rd, 2006, modified for typoes and changed/clearer wordings on July 14, 2007.

**Spoilers**: None really, though there's slight references to some of the games up to Shadow the Hedgehog.

**Summary**: Tails is feeling down about his role in the team. Amy is feeling down about Sonic's most recent, and general evasions. Both need someone to talk to... (Tails/Amy friendship.)

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It was just an ordinary day for the true-blue hero, Sonic the Hedgehog. He stood in the middle of a grass field, not too far from Tails' home, just enjoying the great outdoors. Bright, shining sun. Happy, chirping birds. Blue, cloudless skies. A sudden blackness with some fabric material covering his eyes... Wait.

"Guess whOOOOoooo?" said a cheery, somewhat coy voice from behind the blue hedgehog.

"Gee, um, let me think... Amy?"

"That's right!"

Sonic's eyes were uncovered (then squinted from the sudden return of brightness) and turned around to face his number-one fangirl, Amy Rose. The pink hedgehog in her usual attire of red dress and red shoes with white stripes, smiled sweetly at her number-one hero. "Is my voice that memorable?"

"Oh, it's memorable all right," he said in such a tone that most cannot tell if it's sincere or sarcasm. Amy was about to open her mouth to ask such a question, but Sonic quickly changed the subject. "So what's up? Some looney robot chasing you again?"

"Nope." She brought her hands together behind her back, shuffling the ground somewhat shyly. "I was kinda bored, and I was wondering if you could, you know, go shopping with me or something? Just you and me?"

Sonic suddenly became nervous. "Uh, shopping? Like, as in buying a bunch of stuff you want? Clothes and shoes and whatnot?"

"Of course. That's what shopping is, isn't it? It'd be so much fun, and it'd be so romantic if we were to rest by the fountain and..."

"Uh, actually, I think Eggman is causing trouble somewhere, and I better split to crack one of his latest 'Eggs' and--"

"Oh NO you don't!" Amy interrupted, frowning with her hands on her hips. "Every time I want to go shopping or go to the movies with you, you make up some lame excuse, including 'Oh no, Eggman's attacking, gotta speed, keed!'."

A bead of sweat fell down the side of Sonic's head. "... I don't say, 'Gotta speed, keed' anymore," he sighed.

"Whatever." Amy interlocked her arm with Sonic's, cuddling close to him. Sonic began sweating a bit more. "You're always so darn busy, either beating up Eggman or just running around all over the place. Why don't you just relax once in a while? Relax with me?" As she said that last sentence, Amy stared at the Blue Blur with her bright, green eyes, giving him the best 'she's so cute!' eyes she could, blinking a couple of times for good measure.

"W-Well, uh... I... um..."

At that moment the familiar sound of their arch-enemy's flying capsule was heard. Sonic and Amy looked up to see Eggman floating past them, looking down at them with a sinister grin.

"Why, hello there love-hogs! Guess what? I am thinking thoughts. Eeeevil thoughts. And you know what that means! Ta-ta!"

Eggman started blasting away when Sonic suddenly pulled away from Amy with an unusual expression of relief. "Oh man, am I glad to see you! Let's go!"

A cartoony question mark appeared over Eggman, his face filled with ultimate confusion. Nevertheless, Eggman flew away with Sonic chasing after him on the ground. Amy huffed and screamed after them.

"No! Eggman, darn you! Sonic, come back! Wait!"

But Sonic and Eggman were long gone to yet another of their many, many battles.

----------

It was an ordinary day for Tails, the two-tailed fox pilot and mechanic. He felt very bored today so he decided to simply work on his biplane, the P-3a Cyclone, aka the Tornado III, inside his workshop. Cleaning it, adjusting the seats, maybe give it a better paintjob, _something_. Sonic was outside, but he couldn't help but feel that Eggman must be calling for his attention again. So Sonic might not be back anytime soon.

He sighed. He remembered back in the day when it was just him and Sonic... Before he could travel further down memory lane, however, he heard another sigh from behind him. The eight-year-old orange fox turned and saw the twelve-year-old pink hedgehog walking unenthusiastically into the lab.

Tails wondered if something was bothering his friend, but he put up a smile and greeted her. "Hi Amy."

"Hey Tails," she sighed deeply without looking at him.

Now he knew something was wrong. Tails hopped off from his plane and walked toward Amy, looking concerned. "What's the matter?"

She sighed. "It's Sonic. He can't... or won't go shopping with me."

"Oh..." Tails knew how much Amy liked his best friend. Really liked. She talks about him a little. Okay, a lot. Ever since that day when Sonic saved Amy's life from Metal Sonic and Eggman on "Little Planet," Sonic became Amy's greatest hero in her eyes and has been wanting his heart ever since.

So it was not an uncommon occurrence for Tails to see a disappointed Amy after being "rejected" again and again. But normally she perks right back up almost immediately afterwards and tries again and again. This time, however, something seemed... different. Tails can't quite put his finger on it, though.

"Is it okay if I just sit here for a little while?"

"Sure, I don't mind," said Tails, smiling.

Amy thanked him and sat on the floor, back to the wall. Tails went back to work on the Tornado III. But when he turned around he saw Amy sitting there on the floor, knees to her chest, looking uncharacteristically unhappy. Amy is unhappy sometimes, yes, but normally not _this_ unhappy.

Tails abandoned his work and walked over to the pink hedgehog. "It couldn't have been that bad. Just try again. Maybe Sonic was nervous or something, or just really shy," he suggested.

But Amy shook her head. "Maybe. But I'm not too sure on that anymore."

"What do you mean?" Tails asked, sitting next to her.

"I don't... I don't think he likes me."

"What? Of course he likes you, Amy!" Tails said as if that was one of the most unbelievable things he ever heard. "You're friends, aren't you?"

But Amy shook her head again, her hands gripping tightly on her knees. "But he's always avoiding me. He's afraid of being alone with me. He's..."

"Amy, look at me." Amy turned her head to Tails, her sad, green eyes to Tails' serious, blue eyes. "Sonic likes you. He cares about you a lot. In fact, he considers you a wonderful person and friend."

"What?" Amy couldn't believe it. Sonic thinks she's _wonderful_?

"Yes. He told me so himself. He told me about you and Gamma and how you helped turn him good. But he gives you and Shadow as a greater example. Sonic thinks that if it wasn't for you, Shadow probably would have been consumed by his hate... and I think so, too. Sonic said to me, and I quote, 'That Amy's one sweet gal. If I were in her shoes I probably would've busted them up or at the least ignored them instead.' "

"... He actually said that?"

"Yep," Tails said, smiling. "Sonic may not always say this outloud, and he might kill me for telling you all this, but you're a sweet, caring person, and Sonic likes that in you. He just gets... um... I can't think of a good word for it, but he feels that way when you get a little, uh, too clingy or obsessive or... something. You know?"

Tails momentarily flinched, preparing himself for a smack or worse, a Piko Piko Hammer to the face, for that last part. But instead, Amy smiled, feeling a mix of relief, modesty, and embarrassment. "That's... That's so sweet. I never knew he thought of me that way. Thanks, Tails. Really. I feel a lot better now."

"Don't mention it," said Tails, waving it away (and also quietly sighing with relief).

Suddenly Amy grew a naughty grin. "Did he say I'm cute and adorable, too?"

Tails grinned a bit himself. "Don't push it."

The two sat silently for a moment. Amy thought she would go back outside and find Sonic, but suddenly she felt like staying here just a little longer. Tails thought he would go back to doing whatever in his lab to satisfy his boredom, but suddenly he didn't feel like it right now. Instead, he decided to open another subject for conversation.

"At least you _do_ spend a lot of time with him, though."

"Hmm?"

"I remember back in the day when it was just Sonic and me, and we would always battle Eggman together. Sometimes I would get kidnapped and Sonic would need to rescue me, but it was still cool. But then, all these new adventures started happening. Chaos, Shadow, the ARK, Metal Sonic, those creepy Black Army aliens... Suddenly, Sonic has been more busy than ever before. And me? I'm stuck here building things. I mean, I built things back then, too; I created the first Tornado when Eggman created the first Death Egg. But now I have to build stronger things in greater number to counter Eggman's stronger robots, and stronger new enemies. Don't get me wrong, I like building and fixing, and I love inventing new stuff. But still..."

"You wish you had more time to spend with your best friend," Amy nodded.

"Yeah." A pause. "Lately, I... I sometimes wonder if I'm important enough."

Amy blinked. His statement caught her totally by surprise. "What?"

"Sometimes I feel like I don't contribute much. Sonic does all the big work. Knuckles and Shadow, too. Me? I just stay cooped up in my lab with my gizmos, and repairing the Tornado III when necessary. But anybody can do that, can't they?"

"Tails. Look at me."

Tails turned his head. And the instant he did, he received a light bonk on the head. It didn't really hurt but it still caught him off-guard, and he rubbed his head and stared at Amy, saying, "What was that about?"

Amy folded her arms and stared straight into the blue eyes of her friend. "For saying stuff like that. Tails, you _are_ important. Not just anybody has your smarts. Not just anybody can build and repair like you can. If it wasn't for you and your first Tornado, how would Sonic have gotten into that Death Egg then?"

"Well..."

"And what about the Egg Carrier? Thanks to you and your Tornado, you and Sonic were able to reach the Egg Carrier and rescue me. What would Sonic and I have been able to do if you weren't around?"

"Well, uh, buy a ticket and take the airplane there?"

Amy rolled her eyes at his excuse. "Uh-huh, sure. 'Excuse me sir, would you mind if your pilots ride us to a humongous ship full of laser cannons, gun turrets, and other weapons of total destruction, please?' C'mon, Tails."

Tails looked down on the floor for a minute, thinking about this.

"And if I remember correctly, you prevented Eggman from detonating a missile in the middle of a city, saving hundreds, if not thousands of lives! All by yourself!"

Tails smiled as the memory of that victory reappeared in his head.

"Okay, so maybe you're not as strong as Sonic, Knuckles, or Shadow here," said Amy, pointing to Tails' arms before adding, "No offense." Tails shrugged a 'none taken' gesture. "But you _are_ strong here." Amy lightly taps on Tails' forehead.

The two-tailed fox let all this sink in. It didn't take long before his smile returned. Seconds, to be exact. "Heh... You're right. What was I thinking?" he said, scratching behind his head sheepishly. "I don't know why I thought that stuff. I guess I just wanna be in on the action more often."

Amy smiled back. "You _are_ in on the action. You're just, uh, playing a different role in it, or something."

"Mm. Thanks, Amy. Now I feel better, too."

"It's kinda funny. Here we both were, down in the dumps, but all we had to do was talk to each other and all was right again." Amy paused a moment, putting a finger to her lips. "And you know what? I'm glad it was with you."

Tails' eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yeah. I don't think it would've worked as well with the others. There's Cream, and she's pretty sweet, but she hasn't known Sonic as long as you have. And you're pretty sweet yourself."

"Y-You think so?" Tails said shyly. "Well, I always thought you were pretty nice, too."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Well, except when you get mad and swing your hammer around. Then you get kinda scary..."

Rather than take offense, Amy just laughed it off. "That just means you better not mess with Amy Rose!" she boasted, flexing her skinny arms.

Amy and Tails shared a laugh for a moment then became silent again. Tails traced some random letters on the floor. Amy tapped her foot. They wondered how they could break the awkward silence, when they suddenly got an idea.

"Hey, you know what--"

The two stopped each other, both of them simultaneously having something to say. Tails smiled at Amy and said, "You first."

"Okay. I was thinking, you know, if you ever need someone to talk to, or you're feeling lonely, and like, Sonic or anybody else isn't around... You could, like, come to me."

"Really? I was just thinking about that. I'll still be around so you can vent your frustrations about Sonic or something."

"Don't I always do that?"

"Well, yeah..."

"Doesn't it ever annoy you?"

"Well, sometimes... But I keep quiet because I know you feel better afterwards."

Amy smirked. "Or because you fear my wrath." Tails nervously laughed, scratching behind his head. The girl's smirk melted into a sincere smile. "But thanks. Maybe when we're both bored or lonely, we could go do something fun together. In fact, let's go do something fun together right now!"

At the sound of 'do something fun,' Tails immediately hopped to his feet excitedly. "Okay, let's go!" he said, helping Amy to her feet as they exited the lab.

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Just as they stepped back into the great outdoors, Sonic reappeared. He was breathing heavily and appeared scratched up, but otherwise unharmed. "H-Hey guys!"

"Hey, Sonic," Tails greeted.

"I guess you just beat up that Egghead?" said Amy.

"Yup. Turned out he was just bored, and he purposely lured me into a trap so he could attack me... just to kill his boredom! Man, is that guy weird."

He paused for a moment, then spoke directly to Amy. "Listen, Amy. I'm sorry about blowing you off like that. You're not too mad at me, are you?"

"Weellllll... I was a little. But everything's fine now," she smiled. Tails looked at her direction and smiled as well.

"Oh, good. So I guess you still want to go out with me today, huh? Well, if you really want to..."

"Actually, I think I'll spend time with Tails instead."

Words could not express the expression on the Blue Blur's face. "... What?"

"See you later, hero," said Amy sweetly, walking past him.

"See ya, Sonic," Tails said, following her.

Sonic stared at the two of them, shaking his head in utter disbelief. "Wait a minute. Amy, you don't wanna go out with me? Aren't you supposed to be chasing me or something? Like you always do?"

Amy turned to him and smiled. "Mmmm, not today, Sonic."

Sonic stared at her some more as she continued to walk away. Amy Rose, his number-one fangirl with a supreme crush on him, just turned her number-one hero and supreme crush down.

No ordinary ruler would be long enough to measure how far the blue hedgehog's jaw dropped.

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"Don't get me wrong, Tails," said Amy. "I still really like Sonic, and I still want to win his heart. But today, I think I'll take a break. It'd be nice not having to worry about impressing anybody or feeling all shy and nervous this time."

"That's cool. So, where are we going for fun, anyway?"

"Where I couldn't get Sonic to take me: To the mall! Yeah, we're gonna go to all the women's clothing and fashion stores, and we're gonna buy me some new dresses, and shoes, and socks, and nightgowns, maybe some make-up products, and..."

At that moment Tails, despite recently wanting to handle things on his own more often, felt the urge to scream for Sonic's help, and pondered the wisdom of accompanying the pink, enthusiastic hedgehog after all.

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**THE END**


End file.
